There are several reasons that ink-jet printing has become a popular way of recording images on various media surfaces, particularly paper. Some of these reasons include low printer noise, capability of high-speed recording, and multi-color recording. Additionally, these advantages can be obtained at a relatively low price to consumers. Though there has been great improvement in ink-jet printing, accompanying this improvement are increased demands by consumers in this area, e.g., higher speeds, higher resolution, full color image formation, increased stability, flexibility in image manipulation and the creation of visual effects without decrease in quality or resolution, etc. The demand is even higher in the photo format printing arena because of the increasing use of digital cameras and other digital image capturing devices to create photo quality images as well as the manipulation of images to create other desired visual effects. As a result, ink-jet systems that can produce different photographic effects, such as a matte finish on glossy photo images without a significant increase in cost are highly sought after.
Though the above list of characteristics provides a worthy goal to achieve, there are difficulties associated with satisfying all of the above characteristics. Often, the inclusion of an ink component meant to satisfy one of the above characteristics can prevent another characteristic from being met. Thus, most commercial inks for use in ink-jet printers represent a compromise in an attempt to achieve at least an adequate response in meeting all of the above listed requirements
One characteristic of ink-jet printing systems that is considered is related to image gloss when printed on various types of media substrates. Sometimes, a matte finish can be highly desirable because color appears softer with a matte finish. Furthermore, text with a matte finish can be easier to see than on glossier finishes. However, in order to achieve a matte finish, traditional methods have proved to be expensive and somewhat cumbersome. Accordingly, investigations continue into developing ink-jet systems and formulations that give text and photo quality images appropriate matte or gloss finish.